Water Goblyn History

... and so with the rise of The Great War, we were forced to flee from the grassy plains and dense forest we once called home. As we wept and mourned the loss of our homeland, our cries of grief were hear only by Dagon, for he had seen that we took were cast out by the Gods whom once looked down upon him. He saw that Melashekhaad had left our prayer's unanswered, and finding kondhip with our abandonment at the hands of our creator Dagon gave us great insight, teaching us to be as water. This changed our peoples way of life and our culture evolved to grant us the ability to thrive where most creations of the other Gods could not: at sea.

We began to build our first village near seaside cliffs. Over time, we developed ways to defend ourselves from natural predators. At first this was an issue as we had not prepared to take on the kind The moist conditions that we were now forced to live under meaning metal had become inefficient, and so our bodies had to change. Thos sacrifice of our very life blood pleased Dagon and he blessed us with the knowledge and power of the animals living amongst the reefs.

Like most Goblyns our skin is green, but the more time we spent in the water the more we began to take in a "blueish" shade of Green to help camouflage us. We learned to hold our breath for hours and hours from watching the other air breathers like us who lived in the Sea like the Turtles Whales and Water Doggos. We learned to raise our kits in the water from birth until adolescence, mimicking the fishies. We used the watery caves below our village as nurseries to keep the Kits safe from Sharks and other predators.

As the oceans moved and changed we traveled alongside it, and we began inhabiting deep lakes, sandy beaches, swampy marshlands and along winding rivers. If you are near water, you're probably near us and just don't know it.

In time we grew a connection to water itself, and evolved to have psychics control over it and the various organisms who inhabit it's ecosystem. These were the origins of our Fishomancy, gifted to only the most intelligent members of the Water Goblyn race.

One such being was a Khuul. She was born long after the Undead War had ended during an era of peace among monsterkind. Inspired by tales of Sifu, Khuul would also attempt to find entry into the underworld to defeat Baulk or at the very least find a means to help their race evade him altogether. Through her studies she found that the best means to expand her knowledge of the Sea was with the assistance of others. So she sought the help of the Syrens, The Kappa, The Deep Ones and other aquatic races. They forged a Coven of oceanic scholars known as the Acolytes of Bhogg, and they sailed the world in search of connections between the seas and the waters within the River of Souls.

One night while in a particularly thick fog, Khuul would spot some form of large aquatic creature just off the side of the ship. One that they had heard of in legend but they had not believed to be real until that moment. For it was a Void Whale. These creatures were said to be one of if not THE only creature capable of passing through the Material Plane and The Void by means of traveling through what was known to sailors as "The Sea of the Damned". Khuul took this as a omen of good fortune. For if this meant that she and her crew had unknowingly sailed into the Void itself.

Within the Void she and her crew came across only one singular island. Believed to be haunted. Sources say that blood spilled in the island would turn into plants and that the fungal growths that seemed to litter the trees svd whisper to onlookers may actually be the souls of travelers who never made it off the island. One of which is said to have asked Khuul about her thoughts on the recent "regicide". But she knew that unless one of the monarchs had been slain in the month they were gone, its likely they were talking about one of the monarch killed long before the eradication of the True Goblyn race.

Eventually Khuul and her companions came across an ancient book dubbed the "Tome if Abhorrent Wisdoms". The book then not only explained to them where in the Void they were but how to return home and how to use it's own power to expand their powers of Fishomancy. Khuul agreed, and in time she returned to the Tribe and taught us the secrets of the Void Whale and the seas between where souls drift into the Void's Waters until they wash up on another Land of the Living, if they ever do.

But in time the Tome of Abhorrent Wisdoms drove Khuul to madness and her once peaceful coven had become the Necromyc Acolytes of Bhogg Murr. Rumors of Fishomancers raising the dead had arrived in the court. These rumors jump started an investigation within our tribes.

Soon the royal court was abuzz with new claims of what Fishomancers could do. This led to kidnappings of the Fishomancer tribes, which in turn led to those communities retreating further into the swamps and rivers of the mainland. Many Water Goblyns were slaughtered in this conflict, leaving few Fishomancers to pass on their beliefs and traditions. Was from then carried through the regions by a new generations of Fishomancers.

During this time Khuul had fully transitioned into Khuul the Ghoul Witch of the Arcane sea and she disappeared into the mist of sea before she could finish her original work and help us find a passage way through the Sea of the Damned that may help Goblyn kind evade the River of Souls and inevitably being chomped by Baulk. Khuul taught us that if we do not mess with the Void it won't fight back. She taught us to traverse those waters as the Void Whales do.

Because of this most Water goblyns tend to have different beliefs than their land dwelling cousins and often seek the company of like-minded individuals outside the Goblyn race when traveling outside their tribes. However do not mistake this lack of direct allegiance with the other Goblyns variants for disloyalty among their number. When attacked or threatened, they will defend those they consider their own to their dying breath. In battle, water goblyns are graceful of movement and especially good at dodging. Although they're not an inherently violent race some lack opportunities to advance, and tire of living on the scraps of those with more authority or higher social position.

Water Goblyns take up adventuring for many reasons, but when in desperation many are often known to turn to piracy. Water Goblyns of this variety are feared and reviled as ocean-dwelling piranhas. A band of these shark-mounted Goblyns are likely to swoop down on caravans of merchant ships stripping them of everything from gold and jewelry to clothing and hides. Leaving a trail of junk behind them as they evaluate their loot, the bandits swim off in search of other unlucky victims.

Obsession With and Worship of Water

• Water Goblyns do not worship Water as if it is a deity, but instead worshipped it as an unyielding force of nature. given form. One that they believe has chosen the Water Goblyns to be given a fraction of its power in hopes that they might one day pass through the River of Souls without the interference of Baulk. Over time, this has developed into a unique form of worship among the Water Goblyns.

• The moist conditions that Water Goblyns evolved under means that metal is often considered inefficient to carry around as a regular resource (with the exception of currency of course) amongst their number due to it's tendency to rust or entirely break down. Because of this, the only metallic items you're likely to see on them are a pair of goggles to protect their eyes from the sun, or a weapon they may be carrying around. On rare occasions Water Goblyns can be seen wearing high value metal as "trophies" acquired on ship raids. More often than not these items are kept as family heirlooms or a method of showing off success among other pirates rather than for actual practical use.

• Water Goblyns are not necessarily worshippers of the Void or Hod (although it's not uncommon for them to be) but they ARE direct worshippers of Void Whales which they consider to be gods like beings due to their ability to traverse the planes of life and death at will. While no Water Goblyns can literally do this in the exact same way as Void Whales, spiritually all Water Goblyns have a deep connection to the water itself and can therefore traverse the Sea of the Damned with a relative sense of ease/familiarity compared to most land dwelling creatures that may find themselves adrift in their waters. While not all Water Goblyns can find a way inside these dark waters without magical intervention their Khuuls teachings gave them a natural connection to the waters of the Material Plane can always lead them out.

Fishomancy

• A truly powerful Water Goblyn Fishomancer can be identified by the presence of their familiars. During the meeting stage, potential Fishomancers will often be "chosen" by an aquatic or amphibious animal. This creature will often swear life long loyalty and is generally considered the first step to a Fishomancer finding their connection to the water and the life within it.

• Fishomancers study the nature of the water in order to preserve it, and eventually control it. However, the ultimate goal for Water Goblyn Fishomancy is their specific study of aquatic life forms and how it's life cycles connect to the Goblyn cycle of death and rebirth. Hoping to use these same studies to eventually find a pathway between the Sea of the Damned and the River of Souls in hopes this knowledge would be used to help future goblyns avoid being chomped by Baulk. This in turn would make theirs the race that would bring back the True Goblyns.

• Fishomancers are hard working people, many spending days harvesting the rivers and tending in the midday sun. Many are seen with a hood only attached to them by a leather cord, giving ease of shade. It is considered a holy symbol because of the semblance to the depiction of the Void in most legends, a hooded figure in the midst of water.

• Many Fishomancers will often have depictions of the art of Fishomancy painted or tattooed onto their bodies, or even sewn on their clothes. Many have even to been known to decorate the walls of their homes with these works of art. These depictions usually have a fish made of bones contrasting with a shadow-like fish silhouette or a living fish in some manner.

• Fishomancers are raised in the fountain of a concept known as "The Fishnet of Fate" believing people connect like strings of a fisherman's net, intersecting and weaving to create Fate. Some Fishomancers will wear a Fishnet into battle as a sign of bravery, carrying Fate itself with them. In many Fishomancer ceremonies, worship groups can be seen weaving a Fishnet together, each knot and cross representing a prayer, memory, or connection with those involved.

Fishomancer Rituals

• The Rites of the Void:Fishomancers will gather to watch the rituals that are undergone to be allowed to explore the void. Often these rituals will take place in cycles for an individual, a way to mark spiritual progress and bearing throughout a year or so. These rituals often culminate in visits the Void, a means to stay prepared for the Journey of Crossing.

• Rite of Cups: As a test and reminder of how fast Life will decay in the land of the dead, this ritual is the representation of drinking in the Void and tasting Death itself. Fishomancers will go from door to door to participate in drinks, swapping stories along the way, until they have visited every nearby home or until the initiate concedes defeat. This is a reminder of how to stay afloat in the Void, by remembering the connections to the living and to each other, even through a murky darkness.

• Ritual of the River: A reminder that Death is nothing more to fear than Life, this ritual centers around two warriors entangled by the arm, in a fierce fight in a waterway. Both warriors aim to best the opponent with a single hand free in the middle of a stream, sometimes both wielding a large stick, attempting to drag the other warrior across the water way to the other side of the bank. It’s a right of passage for any warrior wishing to advance their rank, often going against their superior or of the same ranking.

• Rites the Word: This is a ritual for new congregation members. New Fishomancers must recite the stories of the gods to an Elder Fishomancer. It's a sign of respect within the culture. To know history is to know lessons already learned.

• Ritual of the Voidguide:In every spiritual journey there comes a time when Fishomancers must first cross to the Void. In this first crossing, the one crossing over must find a Voidguide on the other side. This Voideguide will create a lifelong bond with the person crossing, always guiding them out to the darkest depths and helping them return to the Shore. Many Fishomancers proudly display their Voideguide on them, usually within their personal depiction of Fishomancy.

Water Goblyn Physical Traits

• Like most Goblyns, Water Goblyns have Green skin. However due to the nature of their evolution, most (but not all) water goblins are born with a more "blueish" shade of green than typical Goblyns. The vibrancy of this color is often dependent on the nature of the watery environment in which they spent their youth. Meaning tropical born Water Goblyns will likely be a brighter shades of blue and green than a Water Goblyn born in the dark cold temperate zones. Their hair is generally a blue or green hue and when long they often wear it in thick braids while fishing, sailing or fighting.

• Because Water Goblyns are born and raised under water until adolescence they have the ability to see in the dark depths of the ocean. However this comes at the cost of them being unable to see on the surface without some form of eye protection as exposure to direct daylight for prolonged periods can cause them to go blind if they aren't careful.

• Water Goblyns are amphibious beings, however contrary to popular belief they haven't developed the ability to breathe underwater like Syrens or Merfolk. Water Goblyns actually have the ability to hold their breath for extended periods of time a trait they very likely picked up by studying and mimicing the behavior of other Semi-Aquatic air breathing Mammals such as Whales or Dolphins. They also have developed the natural ability to close their nostrils on command, a trait they apparently picked up by observing the habits of Seals and Sea Lions.

Dressing Like a Water Goblyn

• Water Goblyns like to tattoo or paint their bodies and faces with different markings resembling waves or symbols resembling aquatic creatures. The colors used in these markings are most commonly black white silver gold and varying shades of blue. A common example of this is covering their eyes in a black thick Kraken ink to prepare for a fight and to strike fear into the hearts of their enemies. Adversely they're also known to to wear glorious shades of Blues Silvers and Golds when performing import ceremonies among their community. Many Fishomancers will have a depiction of the art of Fishomancy tattooed on them.

• Typically, Water Goblyns of the modern era live so far away and so far removed from their Goblyn ancestry it's a common misconception that they have have no real "uniformity" to their fashion. This is of course a misunderstanding of their culture all around. Due to the often rough and damp areas they tend to live in, clothing tends to simply break down over extended periods of time; Because of this they'll typically adorn themselves in collections of seaweed kelp and other items left behind by passing ships. More often than not this results in Water Goblyns tend to have a similar fashion as the sailors and fisherman from the areas which they hail. This often results in an attire that is a mix of seafaring attire with slight customizations made to compliment traditional Goblyn fashion.

Known Water Goblyns:

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